The Broadway Melody (1929)

Though it is only the second week, I am cutting this very close. Technically, I do have a couple more days before the week is up. But for the future, I will try to watch a movie and get my review posted during the first part of the week. Some new additions to the blog and posts: A "Films  Also Nominated" section and a new logo. Anyway, Here is the next movie, the second movie on my list, the 1929 Oscar winner "The Broadway Melody."

Films Also Nominated:

• Alibi (Crime Film)
• In Old Arizona (Western)
• Hollywood Revue (Musical-Comedy)
• The Patriot (Semi-biographical film)

Movie Found On:

• Megavideo

Play-by-Play:

• The Broadway Melody: The first musical and sound picture to win the Oscar.
• Starts off with aerial views of New York with the melody of "Give My Regards to Broadway."
• According to Wikipedia this is the song's film Debut.
• First Scene: Gleason Music Publishing Company
• A few rooms with different Musical Acts performing
• Eddie Kearns showcasing his new song to (John Waters Look-a-like) Jimmy.

• Crowd gathers to listen and like most modern musical numbers, the other musicians, even though it is a brand new song, play along amazingly well.
• Eddie tells a couple chorus girls to to take a hike because he is using the Mahoney sisters instead of them.
• Enter the Mahoney sisters. Queenie (The younger pretty one) and the oddly named Hank (The older smart one). A sister singing act from small town, PA
• Funny scene to set them up as small town girls. Hank is shown with a suitcase full of stolen "mementos" from the train and working together with Queenie to get out of having to give the bellhop a tip.

• Queenie expresses her fears: Leaving a place where there are well known and going to New York where they are just another sister act. Hank consoles her.
• Enter Uncle Jed. Stuttering (I'll assume) manager from back home. Warning them of the dangers of New York, but gets shot down and leaves.
• Eddie coming straight from Gleason, comes to the hotel to meet the sisters. We find out that Hank and him are to be married.Eddie obvioulsy likes what he sees in
  Queenie, probably gonna cuase some problemns later.
• Eddie tells the girls that they are to be singing his new song "The Broadway Melody", he sings again.

• Next Scene: Zanfield's theater during rehearsal of the revue.
• New girl hazing, one of the dancers puts a bag on the piano, ruining the sister's audition.
• Zanfield says he may be able to use Queenie but not Hank.
• After a couple more snide comments from one of the dancers towards Hank, a catfight ensues.

• Queenie pleads with Zanfield to let Hank join, he agrees. Eddie sees Queenie stand up for Hank and starts to like her, but Queenie likes him too, but she couldn't do that to Hank.
• During the final dress rehearsal, Queenie and Hank exchanges pre-show jitters. Also, there are problems with the music, spotlight, wardrobe and one of the dancers fall off a high perch. 
• Zanfield, thinking that the beginning is to slow, he decides to cut the sisters from the revue. They also decides to replace the fallen dancer with Queenie and she does very well. Hank is jealous.
• Eddie invites Queenie and Hank to dinner, Queenie feigns a headache, but soon they find out that she has a date Jock Warner. Hank doesn't like it, but Queenie still says she will go with him, I assume so she can't get her mind off of Eddie.
• After their dinner, Hank comes into the apartment and sees that Queenie didn't go on the date after all.
• A couple weeks later on Queenie's birthday, Jock shows up with a flowers, and tells her that he is throwing a party for her, but she makes him leave. Eddie shows up and tells Queenie about Jock's reputation. They share a cigarette. 
• Hank goes to Uncle Jed and she tells him about the situation with Queenie. He says if Queenie wants to stay in New York he can pair Hank up with another blonde and book a 30-week job for them.
• Back to Eddie and Queenie, he sings to her "You Were Meant for Me." Eddie swoops in for the kiss just as Hank comes in.  So now she knows just how Eddie feels.

• Hank shows Eddie Queenie's Birthday cake and the ring she plans to give to her also she tells him about the party she is throwing for her, but Queenie decides to go Jock's party instead.
• Hank is shown praying and crying that she has lost Queenie, but she's happy that she still has Eddie.
• At Jock's party, the musician start to play "You Were Meant for Me" Queenie tells them to stop and they start to play "The Broadway Melody."
• After Queenie and Jock dance, he gives her a diamond bracelet and offers to buy her a car and an apartment on Park Ave.
• Back at the apartment, a very drunk Queenie starts telling Hank about the party and about Jock's gift of a bracelet instead of a ring and about Jock's offer. Hank tells Queenie about what she deserves, not Jock but a man who will love her and treat her right like Eddie treats her. But Queenie doesn't think she deserves that life.

• Back to the theater, a few more acts in the revue gets performed. One is about a marriage. Another is called "The Boy Friend" and is sung by The Mahoney Sisters. 
• Hank and Eddie confronts Queenie again about Jock but Queenie doesn't want to hear either of them. Hank leaves to the dressing room and Eddie stays and talks to Queenie. 
• Again, Hank tries to tell Queenie that Jock isn't the marrying type and they get in a fight and Queenie pushes hank to the ground and is about to storm out.

• Eddie comes in just as Queenie is about to leave. Eddie says that he is mad enough that he would kill Jock. Eddie tries to restrain her but she pushes him off and screams that she hates him and she runs out.
• Hank sees Queenie get into a car with Jock and tells Eddie that she knows that he loves Queenie, that she was stringing him along for the act, that she would never marry him, and that he is a coward for letting Jock take Queenie instead of fighting for her.
• As soon as Eddie leaves, Hank breaks down and cries, saying that she does want to be his wife.
• Hank calls Uncle Jed to accept his offer with a new partner.
• Meanwhile, Jock is being awfully rude with Queenie and is not letting her leave. Eddie barges in a fight in a fight with Jock, but is quickly punched to the ground.

• Seeing how Eddie risked himself for her dumps Jock and throws the bracelet her gave her to the ground. Jock has Eddie thrown out, Queenie runs after him. Queenie wants Eddie to take her home.
• Fast forward a bit. Hank receives a letter from Eddie and Queenie saying that they had a great honeymoon and that they will be visiting her. They arrive. Hank and Eddie have an awkward moment. Queenie and Eddie invite Hank to come to Long Island and live with them. Hank declines and says she prefer hotels where she has servants. Uncle Jed calls Hank a trooper.
• Queenie replacement Flo come in and starts flirting with Eddie, Queenie gets up in anger, but quickly Hank steps in and makes Flo stop.
• Hank and Flo show everybody their act but get cut short because their about to miss their train. Just before they leave Eddie, Hank,and Queenie share in a hug.

• After Hank leaves, Queenie feels bad for her because Hank never got  real break and that she wasn't any help. Eddie consoles her.
• Flo talks to Uncle Jed about the act and he says "It's better to star in Oshkosh that starve on Broadway" Hank says don't worry, she will get them to Broadway soon.
• Credits Roll.

Review:

•  The movie wasn't all bad, but in my opinion it could of been a lot better. Basically the plot of the movie is this: Two small town sisters go to New York to star in a Broadway revue, The younger steals the show as well as the love of the older sister's fiance. Sound's like a drama to me, but they made it more of a comedy. They through in a lot of unneeded comedy scenes and underplayed more of interesting parts of the plot. For example, Hank could of been even a little upset that Eddie loved her sister instead of her (but she wasn't) or shown as a heroic martyr sacrificing her love for Eddie in order to save Queenie from Jock (But she wasn't).  Reading Wikipedia it says that this was one of the first musicals and was a great success but has since been labeled as weak and cliche-ridden and that it only only won because the other nominees were equally unimpressive. Stuttering Uncle Jed got old quick. However Hank, played by Bessie Love, was easily the best character in the movie. But in my opinion, the movie does have some problems. However, in the end it was 1929, you must put yourself in that mindset, many of the flaws I find are because I'm used to newer modern movies. Overall, The Broadway Melody is a good movie and deserves a watch just because it's the first of it's kind.

Next Movie:

• All Quiet on the Western Front